The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali are made up of 196 sutras and are said to help you live a fulfilling and happy life here on earth that’s free from suffering. The first chapter, or pada, explains the human mind and how you have the ability to tap into your own stillness.

Yoga Sutra 1.3, “Tada drashtuh svarupe avasthanam,” can be translated as, “Then the seer rests in their own true nature.” This word “seer” refers to the part of you that observes what’s happening around you and within you. It’s the part of you that doesn’t move or change while your mind is moving through thoughts, phases, and emotions.

When the “seer” is in their own true nature, it no longer associates itself with the material world, the mind, or the body. It recognizes it’s more than the emotions and the phases that the mind moves through. This sutra is where you begin to tap into that concept that you’re not your body or your mind. You’re something beyond those. You are a soul and you have a body and a mind.

It’s interesting how this sutra appears so early on in the text because it’s such a huge concept to unpack and understand! This is an invitation to ask yourself who you really are beyond your job, your family role, your likes or dislikes, your car, where you live, and what you look like. Yoga Sutra 1.3 is asking you to tap into the part of you that never changes and is eternal.

This is a lot! A good practice to cultivate alongside this sutra is to think about what you truly are not. Anything about yourself that can change is not you. You’re not the color of your hair or your career title. You are a soul and you have a body. The nature of your soul is all-loving, so anything that is not all-loving is not you.

Headstand is such a great pose to work towards because coming upside down presents lots of new perspectives. It’s a time to really surrender expectations, check in with any egotistical moments that may come up, and realize how you can use your amazing gift of a body to become more contemplative in difficult situations. When learning this pose, it can cause some frustration and you may not be able to hold it for very long. However, once you’ve been practicing it for a while, it can be a time to observe what comes up as you’re in this inverted shape.

Supporting Pose #1: Forearm Plank with Interlaced Fingers

This pose will help you find the placement of your arms on the mat and also introduce you to how you need to activate your arms and press away from the ground. Often, students think that all of their body weight needs to be on their head when they really need to be activating their upper back and arms much more.

1. From all-fours / hands and knees, lower your forearms to the mat.
2. Bend your elbows and touch your hands to the opposite elbow.
3. Interlace your fingers while keeping your elbows beneath your shoulders.
4. Extend your legs back into a plank position.
5. Send the crown of your head forward as your heels reach back. Press the mat away from you with your forearms and engage your abdominals.

Supporting Pose #2: Virabhadrasana I (Warrior I) with Fingers Interlaced Behind your Head

This is a great variation to weave into your standing pose sequence because it’ll start to mirror what your arms do when you’re upside down. Warrior 1 is always a nice pose to practice when building towards Headstand because it requires awareness of your hips and also the strength of your legs.

1. From a Low Lunge, turn your back heel down and rise up to Warrior 1.
2. Read your arms up overhead and interlace your fingers behind your head.
3. Open up your palms to feel the back of your head in your hands and move your elbows towards each other.
4. Think about reaching your forearms up towards the ceiling or sky while elongating the sides of your waist.

Supporting Pose #3: Ardha Pincha Mayurasana (Dolphin Pose with Interlaced Fingers)

If someone is still working towards Headstand, this pose can actually be held instead of coming into Headstand. It’s a nice way to build up strength and awareness while inverted.

From a plank pose, lower your forearms to the mat and interlace your fingers.
Press into the mat with your forearms and lift your hips up as you would for a Downward Facing Dog.
Walk your feet a little closer to your head and play with trying to move your hips over your shoulders.
If you can, open up your palms while keeping your fingers interlaced. This can help you avoid gripping your hands too much.

Peak Pose: Sirsasana A (Headstand)

1. From Dolphin Pose, interlace your fingers and begin to walk your feet closer to your head.
2. Lower the crown of your head to your mat and open up your palms so the back of your head is touching the palms of your hands.
3. Try to keep walking your feet towards your head until you feel like your hips are moving over your shoulders.
4. If possible, lift one leg up towards the ceiling or the sky and come on to the tippy toes of your other foot.
5. Engage your abdominals and maybe reach your other leg up to meet it. Press your forearms into your mat and reach your heels away from your head.

As a student of yoga, The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is one of the major texts you will see and study. A good portion of the text discusses the mind and you either learn to control the mind or it eventually controls you. In book 1, sutra 2, Patanjali introduces the concept of “Chitta Vrittis” which refers to “the fluctuations of the mind.”

Sutra 1.2 states: “Yogas citta vritti nirodhah,” which can be translated to, “Yoga is the cessation of the fluctuations of the mind.” This sutra stresses the importance of being in control of the mind and being able to recognize that the mind isn’t always allowing you to see what the truth actually is. The mind is often compared to the ripples you see when you look at an active lake or even like the filters you put over your photos on social media.

The “Chitta Vrittis”, or the fluctuating states of the mind, are: correct perception, delusion, imagination, deep sleep, and memory. “Nirodha” is the cessation of all of these fluctuations. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you no longer think or see with your mind. It means that through the practice of yoga, you become an observer of your mind. You become able to watch when your mind moves through these fluctuations and you can take action from a place of awareness.

Yoga Sutra 1.2 is a reminder that, through consistent practice, you can acquire the tools to be in control of your actions and reactions. You can make decisions that are well thought out as opposed to being at the mercy of your emotions and reactions.

This week our peak pose is Full Wheel, or Urdhva Dhanurasana, and it has a lot going on! This is certainly a pose where your mind can go in a million directions and it can cause a lot of frustration if you haven’t arrived at a place where your mind is calm and you’re in the present moment. This pose requires the front of the legs to be open, strong hamstrings, awareness of the side body, an open heart, strength and mobility in the arms and back, and also overall trust in your ability to maintain balance while incorporating mental and physical strength.

Supporting Pose #1: Crescent Lunge Pose (Anjaneyasana)

This pose helps build awareness in the feet, length through the lower back, and elongation in the front of the thighs. There is a beautiful feeling of grounded-ness and also lightness. It’s a great introduction to the elements that made up Full Wheel and a great pose to begin to allow your body to feel the patterns that need to be applied to the peak pose.

From a low lunge, lower your back knee to the ground. You can use a blanket beneath the back knee if you’d like. Ideally, you’re not directly on the kneecap, but a little above it and closer to the thigh. Uncurl your back toes so all of your toenails are on the mat.

1. Encourage your hips to move a bit forward of your back knee. If the hips are directly above that knee, you may not feel much in the quadriceps.
2. Bring your hands to the top of your front thigh and then extend your arms up high overhead. You may look forward to slightly up, but be mindful to keep the back and sides of your neck long.
3. Think about your front heel and your back knee moving towards one another. They won’t physically move, but it’ll help draw your outer hips inwards to create more stability.

Supporting Pose #2: Supported Bridge Pose with Blocks (Supported Setu Bandha Sarvangasana with Blocks)

If you have access to yoga blocks, this is a great option because it allows your body to release without you needing to engage too much. The props almost do the work for you and you can stay in this pose for a few minutes. This is an excellent moment to come back to your theme or dharma talk, or to give the class a few moments of silence.

1. Bring one block on its highest height for beneath your head and one block on its middle height for behind your shoulders.
2. Sit in front of the blocks, making sure your feet and your sitting bones are one the mat.
3. Begin to recline onto the blocks, adjusting the placement as you come down.
4. You may lengthen your legs if it feels okay and also either extend your arms overhead or keep them out to your sides.

Supporting Pose #3: Bridge Pose (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana)

After moving the blocks away, it’s great to come into the full expression of Bridge Pose because it will help you understand what your feet and legs need to begin to do. It’s a great pose to understand how strong your legs need to be when practicing bridge and it’s a nice time to become more aware of the lift of your chest.

1. Begin on your back with your feet on your mat and your knees bent. Have your feet about hips with apart and your ankles right under your knees.
2. Ground your feet into the mat and use the strength of your legs to lift your hips towards the sky. Use the strength of your upper back to lift your chest a little higher.
3. Look straight up and be sure all of your toe tips are facing forward.
4. Either interlace your fingers and drive your knuckles towards your heels or press your hands into the mat to help keep your chest lifted.

Peak Pose: Full Wheel Pose (Urdhva Dhanurasana)

1. From bridge pose, brings your hands beside your ears.
2. As your breathe in, ground your feet. As you breathe out, come to the crown of your head.
3. Remember to keep your legs within the frame of your body and your toes facing forward as you press your hands into the mat and lengthen your arms.
4. Use the strength of your legs to help you lift your hips higher and send your heart towards the space that you’re looking at.
5. Relax your jaw and remember to breathe. Stay for a few cycles of breathing (even one full round is great!) and come down with the same amount of effort that you came up with.

The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali is a core text in yoga philosophy. You really cannot avoid attending a yoga class or moving through a yoga teacher training without coming in contact with The Yoga Sutras. This is because the text is meant to help us alleviate suffering.

As human beings living here on planet earth, we all have a body and we all have a mind. With this comes suffering, attachments, pain, loss, sadness, and so much more. We experience the beautiful and the breathtaking things in live, but we also experience the opposite.

Yoga Sutra 1.1 is the opening verse of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras. It really provides the groundwork for the entire text. It reads, “Atha yoga-anushasanam,” which can be translated as “Now, the teachings of yoga begin.” or “Now begins the teaching of yoga.” The key word is “now.” It’s all happening in this very moment and it’s right here in the present.

The word “Atha” in Sanskrit is said to signify a new beginning, so it’s an opportunity to let go of whatever was in the past and whatever is attaching you to something that isn’t serving you.

Yoga Sutra 1.1 also suggests that change begins within. We live in a world where we are bombarded with advertisements to buy things that will make us happy. This specific sutra suggests, in its immediacy of using “now” that we don’t need to wait for something to change us. We have it all within ourselves.

Peak Pose: Extended Side Angle (Utthita Parsvakonasana)

Utthita Parsvakonasana is a pose that really requires your full attention. It’s almost impossible (for me, at least!), to be in this pose and think about a to-do list or worry about what I’m cooking for dinner. It’s a pose that really requires strength, full body awareness, openness, and the ability to breath through it all. This pose gives you the opportunity to elongate parts of your body as you inhale and to engage other parts of your body as you exhale.

Supporting Pose #1: Gate Pose (Parighasana)

This pose helps open the inner thighs and to also help each side waist find length. A common issue that I’ve seen with this pose is that students tend to collapse the ribs onto the thigh. Instead of releasing the rips or the waist down to the top of the thigh, it’s important to think about elongating and lengthening..

How to:

1. Stand with your legs wide, facing the long edge of your mat.
2. Bring your hands to the ground or blocks if you can’t reach the ground and then bring one knee at a time to the ground so you’re kneeling.
3. Extend your right leg to the right with your foot down, your toes facing the long edge of the mat (the same direction your chest is facing) and try to keep the pinky edge of your foot on the mat,
4. Reach your arms up and begin to tilt to the right. Bring your right hand to your leg and extend your left arm high overhead. As you inhale, lengthen your right side body. As you exhale, try to turn your bottom right ribs to the sky.

Supporting Pose #2: Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II)

This pose will help you become aware of your back leg and also the alignment of your front leg over the front ankle. It’s a powerful and open pose that may also help you find space in your upper body.

How to:

1. From Downward Facing Dog, step your right foot forward to a low lunge.
2. Turn your back heel down and circle your arms up as you turn your belly and your heart to face the long side of your mat.
3. Extend your arms away from your heart and try your best to have your right arm in line with your right shoulder and your left arm in line with your left.
4. Look over your right shoulder, but stay aware of your back arm. Inhale as you reach your arms away from each other and as you exhale, press into the outer edge of your back foot. .

Supporting Pose #3: Extended Triangle (Utthita Trikonasana)

This pose really helps find the extension in the side body. You don’t already realize how much length and space you have until you approach this pose! It also offers opportunities to find more length each time you breath in and to let go of tension as you breathe out.

How to:

1. From Warrior II, lengthen both legs by engaging your thighs.
2. Reach your arms away from each other and lower your right hand down to your right shin.
3. Move your right hip back in space towards your left foot to create even more space in your right side body.
4. Press your right hand into your right shin as you glide your right hip towards the back of your mat.
5. Reach your arms away from each other as you inhale. Draw your shoulder blades together as you exhale.

Peak Pose: Extended Side Angle (Utthita Parsvakonasana)

How to:

1. From Warrior II, deliver your right forearm onto the top of your right thigh with your palm facing upwards.
2. Bring your left arm overhead to frame your ear and think about your left arm reaching away from your left foot.
3. As you breathe in, press your forearm into the top of your thigh and as you breathe out, glide your right sitting bone underneath you.
4. You may bring your right hand to the mat or to a block. Otherwise, keep your forearm on your thigh to maintain the space in your right side body,
5. If it feels okay, turn your gaze up to your left hand.

Have you ever been in a relationship, or another situation, where you felt you could not express yourself? I certainly have.

The feeling of not being able to express myself is all things opposite of how I genuinely want to feel in my life as my highest and best self. Love, freedom, safety, connectedness, vitality are just some of the elevated emotions I consistently call into awareness for my highest self.

Any time I am in a space where I feel like my true self will not be supported or accepted, I slip into feelings of fear, worry, apathy, suppression, disconnectedness amongst other disempowering emotions that might arise. These types of emotions certainly do not support my highest and best self and definitely do not support me in working in the direction of the life I truly desire and deserve for myself.

The crazy thing about our emotions is how powerful they are. If we fail to check in with ourselves, our emotions can cause a negative feedback loop of disempowering states, within our internal and external world.

On the other side of the coin, the way our emotions can cause a negative feedback loop, they can also cause a positive feedback loop of empowering states. Practices, such as yoga, gives us the tools to be able to notice ourselves (physical body, mental body, emotional and spiritual body). This creates opportunities to become aware of when we are not in full expression mode. I don’t know about you, but when I am in a situation where I cannot fully express myself or be myself, I feel it within every layer of my being. My skin tingles, my chest feels tight, my head hurts, and I overall feel a sense of dullness.

This gives me a signal that something needs to change. Yes, putting myself into a different environment and around different people might be part of that change, but the first step is loving myself enough to want to make that change. Even if it takes effort.

It takes practice to not only become aware of oneself, but to be able to trust oneself in order to make the changes necessary (which often involves stepping outside of our comfort zones) to allow our truest, highest, and best selves to bloom. But I know I can speak for myself when I say the feelings of being able to embrace myself, express myself, and spread my wings are completely worth any initial discomfort. Sometimes we don’t even notice how much we are hiding ourselves until we finally let go and let ourselves truly live.

I couldn’t think of a better pose to highlight self-expression than Wild Thing; there is an openness and a playfulness within this posture that feels very appropriate for this week’s sequence. Let’s get to it…

Supporting Pose 1: 3-Leg Downward Facing Dog (Eka Pada Adho Mukha Svanasana)

One of the entry ways into Wild Thing is from a 3-Leg Downward Facing Dog. This entry (compared to side plank) starts the hips high which is what we are going for in Wild Thing. Taking time to use this pose as a prep pose is worthwhile if you’re planning to enter from here.

How to:

1. From Downward Facing Dog, take the right leg high to the sky behind you.
2. Bend the right leg so the front of the right thigh and hip are open and long.
3. Firm the sacrum in to assist the opening of the front of the pelvis.
4. Keep the left leg and arms firm on the ground and allow your torso to turn towards the right. Turning the torso might not always be appropriate, but in this case that is an action we will take when coming into the peak pose.
5. Look under the right armpit.

Supporting Pose 2: Peaceful Warrior (Shanti Virabhadrasana)

Peaceful warrior is an excellent pose for creating expansion in the body, particularly the sides of the body which is great for back-bending. This pose also has the arm reaching alongside the ear, similar to Wild Thing.

How to:

1. From Warrior II, take your back arm to your back leg.
2. Flip the front hand to the sky and then sweep the arm up and overhead towards the back of the room. Attempt to bring the arm right alongside the ear. Extend through the fingertips.
3. Keep the belly facing the side wall (as opposed to twisting it towards the sky) and look underneath the armpit towards the ceiling.

Supporting Pose 3: Side Plank (Vasisthasana)

Side Plank is an awesome prep pose for Wild Thing as it preps the actions within the arms, pelvis, and feet for the peak.

How to:

1. From Downward Facing Dog, bring the legs together.
2. Keep the left palm down on the ground with fingers spread wide and evenly.
3. Swivel your heels to the left and balance on the outer blade of your left foot. Stack the right foot on top and keep pressing the feet together while spreading the toes.
4. Lift the right arm to the sky while externally rotating the left, supporting arm. This will open the belly to the side wall.
5. Press into the left hand and foot to lift the body up.

Peak Pose: Wild Thing (Camatkarasana)

How to:

1. From Downward Facing Dog, lift your right leg high to the sky and come into a 3-Leg Downward Facing Dog.
2. Begin to reach your right foot towards the floor behind you while spinning the left heel towards the floor, similar to the foot’s rotation in Side Plank.
3. As the actions of the feet are taking place, lift the left arm off the floor.
4. Begin to turn your belly to the sky as you externally rotate the right, bottom arm and plant the right foot to the floor behind you. Now take the left arm overhead and reach to the front of the room.
5. Press your right hand and feet into the ground and firm the sacrum in to encourage a backbending shape.

This is a blog post to all my people pleasers, shape-shifters, potential minimizers… and anyone else who has ever felt like they’ve spent much of their time accommodating others. This goes out to anyone that has made themselves feel/play small, or shrunk themselves in any aspect because of other people’s energy (or crossed their own boundaries in service of making someone else (or a group of people) feel more comfortable).

As someone who has done all of the above, in a variety of aspects, I can say from personal experience that there is no benefit to doing any of these things. In fact, it is a major disservice as the only plausible result of crossing my own boundary is abandonment of myself.

As we are in the midst of pride month, highlighting the topic of being unapologetically you feels appropriate (although, it’s always appropriate to highlight this within our lives). Stepping into one’s power and owning who you truly are is one of the most freeing and loving things we can do for ourselves… but that doesn’t mean it is easy; it doesn’t mean that the journey is without effort. It also doesn’t mean that there is a destination or final result. Being yourself, and not apologizing for it, is an everyday act and overall embodiment.

It’s the choice to get out of bed and wear what you want to wear. It’s the choice to fiercely love who you love with no explanation or justification. It’s the choice to express yourself visually, vocally, and creatively in the ways that feel most aligned for you.

Here is the best part about showing up as your most authentic self: When we make the decision to love ourselves enough to be the fullest expression of who we are, regardless of how others feel about us, we give others permission to do exactly the same.

Peak Pose: Side Lunge (Skandasana)

In my humble opinion, I think Skandasana is a highly overlooked peak pose. Both legs have to externally rotate, while one leg folds in half and the other leg is fully straight. In addition, we’re in a squat position meaning we have to be able to access a widening across the front of the groin (amongst other physical prep work for the pose). While Skansasana might appear like a “small” posture, the prep work to get there requires we open ourselves up and take up space. The poses chosen for this particular journey (aka sequence) specifically focuses on widening across the front side of the body, which sometimes we choose to hide, and taking up space in order to do so.

Supporting Pose 1: Lizard Pose (Utthana Pristasana)

Lizard is a relatively familiar and accessible pose to widen the across the front of the pelvic groins and inner thighs. It also has one bent leg (although not folded as in Skansasana) and one straight leg, lending some similarity between the two postures. There are also many ways in which one could adjust the pose in order to experience the actions necessary to prep for the peak pose, such as adjusting how wide the front foot steps or usage of props beneath the hands.

How to get into Lizard Pose:

1. From downward facing dog, step the right foot to the outside of the right hand. Ensure the sole of the foot is firmly planted on the floor.
2. Place the left knee on the ground keeping the front of the thigh long. Think about aiming the top of the kneecap towards the floor or blanket if you’re using one.
3. Either keep your palms down on the ground or blocks, or lower your forearms down to the ground or blocks. Do whatever will lend the most sensation without overdoing it.

Supporting Pose 2: Goddess Pose (Utkata Konasana)

Goddess pose is not only the perfect pose for being unapologetically you and taking up the space around you, but it’s also the perfect prep pose for Skandasana. Both legs are externally rotated, the front of the pelvis and inner thighs are wide, and the chest is open and lifted.

How to get into Goddess Pose:

1. Turn towards the side wall and widen your feet about 2-3 feet (.61-.91 m).
2. Turn out your legs and feet, which will externally rotate the legs at the pelvis, so that your toes are more or less facing the corners of your mat.
3. Bend your knees so the thighs are “ideally” parallel to the floor and the knees are above the ankles. If your knees cave in when you do this either focus on widening your knees using the strength of outer glute, or narrow your stance. If narrowing your stance forces the thighs out of a parallel position to the floor, that is OK.
4. Take your arms out to shoulder height with palms forward and then bend your elbows into a goal-post shape. Try to relax the muscles of your neck while engaging the shoulder blades slightly towards one another to support the chest widening.

Supporting Pose 3: Tree Pose (Vrksasana)

Tree Pose is yet another posture where we are working with the action of external rotation of the leg and in this posture we have one folded leg and one straight leg, just like we see in Skandasana.

How to get into Tree Pose:

1. Begin in Mountain Pose. Draw your shoulders down away from your ears and stand tall.
2. Ground down through all four corners of your feet and engage your leg muscles.
3. Find a point of focus to help you stay balanced in front of you – on the floor, wall, or ceiling.
4. Engage your abs and begin to lift one foot off the ground.
5. Bring the sole of your foot on your ankle, shin, or upper thigh – avoiding the knee to prevent injury. To help bring your foot on your upper thigh, you can use your hand to guide it there.
6. Bring your hands together in prayer position at your chest or bring your arms overhead with the palms facing each other. Another option is to interlace your fingers together, keeping your shoulders drawn away from the ears. You can also bring your hands on your hips to help with your balance.
7. Hold for several breaths before releasing your leg back down.
8. Repeat on the opposite side.

Peak Pose: Side Lunge (Skandasana)

How to get into Side Lunge:

1. Start in wide leg forward fold.
2. Turn out your right foot and leg, which will externally rotate the leg at the pelvis.
3. Fold your right leg while simultaneously externally rotating your left leg so the knees and toes face the sky.
4. Sit your bum towards the floor as your chest lifts. Steps 3 and 4 more or less happen at the same time.
5. Draw your hands together in front of your heart. Bring your thumbs to your sternum and your sternum to your thumbs.

*Other arm variations are available such as arms overhead or arms spread for a twist to name a couple.